Barton Silverman/The New York Times
Louis Williams of the 76ers blocked a shot from Raymond Felton in a loss that showed the Knicks how much work they have left to do.
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Barton Silverman/The New York Times
Knicks Coach Mike D’Antoni saw his team endure a slow start and a rough finish.
“He got me,” Fields said of the 76ers’ Louis Willliams, who made all five free throws. “Nothing I can do about it.”
The Knicks (3-3) had won their two previous games, and Philadelphia played Sunday without Andre Iguodala, whose streak of 252 consecutive starts ended because he had a strained right Achilles’ tendon. Even with Iguodala, the 76ers had lost five of their first six games.
But the Knicks started slowly and staggered down the stretch, missing their last eight shots from the field after Amar’e Stoudemire gave them a 94-93 lead with 4 minutes 27 seconds to play. The Knicks missed 19 of 24 shots in the fourth quarter and were outscored, 26-15.
“No knock to them, but this is a game we should have won,” said Knicks guard Raymond Felton, who made only 2 of 11 shots.
D’Antoni said the game seemed to spin away from the Knicks in the third quarter, when they committed 11 fouls and, as he said, fell into “a little bit of a funk.” That is when Williams, an expert at leaning into defenders to draw fouls, suckered Fields twice.
Toney Douglas had five fouls entering the fourth quarter, but D’Antoni said he had no choice but to play him. Douglas missed all three of his shots. No one but Stoudemire scored more than one basket in the fourth quarter for the Knicks, and Stoudemire made only two.
“It’s a long season,” D’Antoni said. “I will be disappointed if we don’t get better from this point. There were a lot of factors that go into it.”
Less than two full days after an impressive 21-point victory over the Washington Wizards at the Garden, the Knicks made too many mistakes. To a man, players said they were guilty of trying to win the game on their own. That led to a lot of rushed, off-target shots.
Led in the fourth quarter by veterans like Jodie Meeks and Tony Battie, Philadelphia played with more poise and energy. That was unexpected. The 76ers have lost two games by 3 points or fewer, and they blew a fourth-quarter lead Friday in a loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Doug Collins, the first-year Philadelphia coach, said, “It just felt good to see our guys feel good about themselves.”
The Knicks were feeling good about themselves before Sunday, but the noon tipoff and the fact that they had played Washington on Friday night led to a flat performance. It was Kids’ Day at the Garden, but the crowd did not have much enthusiasm.
The 76ers pounded the ball at the Knicks in taking a 33-25 lead in the first quarter, making 16 of 23 shots, many from close range, and a tone seemed to be set.
Stoudemire scored 21 points and had 15 rebounds, but D’Antoni said that the Knicks needed a better supporting cast.
“We are very young,” Stoudemire said, “and making young mistakes happens sometimes.”
The Knicks promised to identify what needs to be fixed, but they are to play four games in the next six days, beginning with a game Tuesday at Milwaukee.
Fields promised that he would try to cut back on handing free throws to opponents.
It was a frustrating day for everyone, including the relentlessly effervescent reserve Ronny Turiaf, who sat at his locker after the game and said, “We know we’re better than that.”
according: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/08/sports/basketball/08knicks.html?_r=1&ref=sports
